


Angel's Wing

by TheatrePhantom



Category: Invader Zim
Genre: Alternate Universe - Angels, Alternate Universe - Angels & Demons, Alternate Universe - Demons, Angel Family, Angel Hierarchy, Angel Wings, Angel/Demon Relationship, Angels, Deal with a Devil, Demons, Devils, Enemies to Friends, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Enemies to Lovers, Gen, M/M, Other, Self-Harm, Self-Mutilation, The self mutilation is only mentioned breifly in a flashback
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-18
Updated: 2020-12-01
Packaged: 2021-03-09 21:07:42
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 5,840
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27612551
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheatrePhantom/pseuds/TheatrePhantom
Summary: Dib has never been the best at being a perfect angel and Zim is not particularly happy with his position in Hell.
Relationships: Dib & Zim (Invader Zim), Dib/Zim (Invader Zim)
Comments: 20
Kudos: 42





	1. Of Heaven and Hell

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Aifizao](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Aifizao/gifts).



People looked up to angels as powerful, pure beings. They were seen as the creatures that guided people along through their lives and protected them from the cruelty of their world. Many people even dreamt of one day joining them in their ranks once the cold grasp of death finally took them. 

That, unfortunately, was not the most accurate depiction of angels. 

Of course, there were plenty of angels that perfectly fit into the popular imagery of them. Many angels  _ did _ spend all of their time doing everything they could to help the people of Earth without getting too involved in their lives and directly doing anything. 

That- directly impacting the world- was one of the two biggest rules of heaven. Angels could do nearly whatever they wanted, but they were not permitted to directly involve themselves in the lives of the living. Doing so would be considered twisting fate and angels were not allowed to that- they were only allowed to make gentle suggestions that would lead people down the right paths. That was all. 

Dib, however, was not one of the angels that liked to follow this rule. In fact, he did everything he could to find loopholes to the laws of heaven that would allow him to do what it was that he  _ truly _ wanted to do. 

Tragically, there was only so much he could do to pursue his desires. 

More than anything, DIb wanted to see the world- not  _ just _ the world but everything within the expanses of the universe. He wanted to see the parts of the galaxies that angels were forbidden from exploring. He longed to travel to the dimensions that angels were incapable of crossing over to due to their supposed purity. He wished to see the little mistakes that God had made aeons ago and had done everything He could to hide away from the angels. He craved the information that had been hidden from the angelic creatures for so long. He yearned to touch the things that were beyond his reach and learn the things that hung beyond the furthest stars. 

Finally being able to realize his long-fantasized-about dreams would not come without a price and, the more time that passed, the more that Dib was willing to take the plunge and change his life forever with no hope of return. 

He wasn’t too worried about that, though- why would he ever  _ want _ to return when there was the universe at his disposal?

Still… the change would be difficult and, while it would open several new doors for him, it would limit him in many other ways. His life would be altered forever and that could be difficult no matter how much he yearned for it. 

Dib was certain that, one day, he would eventually cave and do what needed to be done to get where he longed to be. 

Today, though, would not be that day. 

Today would be dedicated to Dib seeing what he could do to push the boundaries of heaven as much as possible without breaking them outright. It was a challenge that he was constantly up to, despite how much trouble it occasionally caused for him. 

Luckily for Dib, God and the archangels could be frequently…  _ absentee _ , to say the least. He supposed how he couldn’t  _ really _ blame them considering how important their jobs were and the business their lives were constantly filled with, but that didn’t change the odd feeling of abandonment Dib had felt long ago when he was little more than a fledgeling angel. After so many decades, though, that lack of presence became less upsetting and more… simplistic. 

At least, it certainly made Dib’s constant disregard for the rules of heaven far easier to sweep under the rug and keep hidden from anyone of importance. 

And that was exactly what today was all about. 

~~~

Like many of the other demons and devils that resided deep in the depths of the underworld, Zim  _ loathed _ angels. There was little he hated more than the stupid angelic creatures that flitted about uselessly in the clouds. Those ridiculous, idiotic creatures that did  _ nothing _ to benefit the world yet still seemed absolutely confident that they were better than every single beast that crawled the depths of Hell. Their cockiness irritated Zim beyond what he thought was possible. For creatures so useless to their ecosystem, they sure did clearly see themselves as the high and mighty rules of everything. 

It was this hatred for the angels that made the devil dislike his position in Hell even more than previously. 

Truthfully, Zim had little right to complain. He had far more power than most creatures in Hell did and, during his painful existence, he had managed to fight his way up from the position of a lowly demon to a full-fledged devil, now fully capable of traversing the living realm and wracking havoc on the surface. Sure, he had gotten his power through entirely sleazy and not entirely “legal” ways, but Hell wasn’t exactly the place where law-abiding citizens who cared about right and wrong ended up. The never-ending battle for power was far more important to anyone there than  _ morals  _ were, and Zim wasn’t going to let foolish angel propaganda get to him and prevent his success. 

Regardless of his position being better than it had ever been before, he still wasn’t satisfied. Although he had the capabilities to do so much more than most, he didn’t necessarily have the power to do so. 

The almighty rules of Hell kept him under lock and key, refusing to allow him to show his full potential and it infuriated the small devil. He had fought his way to this position for a  _ reason _ and, although he hadn’t taken the traditional route, he had  _ gotten there _ . He deserved this power as much as anybody else considering how hard he had worked for it- how hard he  _ still _ had to work for it. 

Despite everything he had done over the years, the Almighties refused to allow him to do everything he craved so desperately to do. Why bother gaining so much power when you’re incapable of- or, in his case, _prevented_ _from-_ using it? 

They had a capable, willing devil at their disposal, more than happy to do anything in his power to further their missions for power over the waking, yet they refused to allow him to do  _ anything _ with the nearly endless reservoirs of energy and chaos within.

It was ridiculous and Zim didn’t understand. 

He wasn’t going to let his leaders’ current unwillingness get in his way, though. Zim was a force to be reckoned with and he was going to do everything he possibly could to prove that to them, consequences be damned.


	2. True Worth

_ Dib didn't know as much about the surface as he would have liked to. Without going down to the surface itself, there was very little he could learn. The only information he had about the surface was what had been documented long ago, but none of those documents was truly accurate and trustworthy sources. All of them had been written by angels and other holy creatures that resided in heaven rather than anyone who had  _ actually  _ been to Earth's surface. All of the texts were biased and the majority of them didn't focus on any of the _ interesting  _ things about the planet.  _

_ There was only so much he could learn about the world he wanted to see when all he had was poorly documented information. He would have to go down to the surface himself to learn things with any certainty.  _

_ His hands didn’t shake as he finally did what he needed to do. He had worried and fantasized about doing so for years beforehand and he was tired of waiting- tired of letting his concerns about the situation hold him back from finally taking the plunge.  _

_ He didn’t  _ want _ to do this, he _ needed _ to.  _

_ Dib’s hands didn’t even shake as the blade he clutched tightly pierced the flesh of his wing. He didn’t flinch as luminescent indigo blood speckled with flecks of silver splattered all over the soft, delicate feathers of gold that lined his large wings. The pain didn’t register as the once beautiful wing fell to the ground, mangled and torn.  _

_ The stub remaining behind his shoulder blade ached slightly, but the pain felt freeing. He was no longer tethered to the realm he had been born into.  _

_ He had been liberated. _

~~~

It wasn’t frequent that Zim got the opportunity to make the trek to the human realm. Although he had the power to do so, it was irritatingly rare that he got to actually utilize his powers and head anywhere on the surface to wreak havoc. It left him feeling almost restless, some days and on the occasions that he  _ was _ able to join the waking world and cause chaos, he felt giddy with power. He always savoured every moment he got when he was able to traverse realms beyond his own, but, no matter how much he wanted to go off on his own to prove himself to his leaders, he always focused on the mission he had been sent on first, wanting to please the higher-ups. 

Today, though, something strange caught his attention as Zim made his way to the location of his mission. It immediately pushed all thoughts of the task at hand away from his mind. 

It wasn’t every day that he saw the irritating, shitty little angelic creatures descending from the heavens to land on the surface, but it wasn’t unheard of and it usually elicited nothing more from Zim than an exasperated roll of his eyes before he returned to whatever he was doing. 

It was even rarer, though, for Zim to see an angel without both of their wings. 

_ That _ was something that caused him to take pause. 

Angels without wings were a rare sight- unless they were specifically hiding from human beings to avoid being found out. Seeing  _ that _ wasn’t unheard of, though. Seeing an angel with only one wing- nothing more than a scraggly stub of golden feathers on the other side- was something Zim had never seen and he couldn’t help but entirely lose his train of thought as he stared up at the weird angel.

Evidently, he was not alone in this thought. 

Almost as though the angel had sensed the devil’s gaze, the creature whirled around from where he hovered several feet of the ground, golden eyes meeting Zim’s own magenta ones with a level stare. 

The angel remained where he was silently for several moments, singular wing flapping gently to keep him afloat in the air as he carefully regarded the devil below him. 

Not particularly fond of being looked down upon- metaphorically  _ or _ literally- Zim spread his own leathery red wings, beating them a few times to propel himself up to where the angel was, “What’s a creature like  _ you _ doing down here?”

His words were met with a slight sneer, “I could say the same to you, demon.”

“I am  _ not _ a lowly  _ demon _ ,” Zim practically hissed, his spiked tail thrashing to the side aggressively at the insinuation of Zim’s lack of power, “I am a  _ devil _ .”

“And there’s a difference?” The angel sounded genuinely curious as to what the answer to that question was- as if he didn’t understand the hierarchy of Hell. 

Zim let out a chuckle, “What, do they not teach you angels  _ anything  _ up there? I always assumed angels were stupid, but do you truly know  _ nothing _ about the land your kind so adamantly claim to be better than?”

“Then enlighten me,” the angel rolled his eyes. There was something strange behind the amber eyes of the creature, something encompassing hostility that was almost entirely drowned out by curiosity and excitement. The angel wanted something and whatever it was was more important to him than the tension that cracked between them naturally. 

It was then that a small smile twitched across his face, a realization finally dawning upon him. Zim was a devil and while this wasn’t his particular area of expertise, devils were no strangers to unchecked desires that could lead people astray. 

Following the mission Zim had been sent on and stealthily dragging a human to Hell without them even knowing their destiny was being tarnished?  _ That _ was nothing compared to the opportunity presented to Zim- the opportunity to do the very same thing to a holy being- to an  _ angel _ . 

Now  _ that _ would impress his leaders. It might even be the thing that finally showed them his true worth. 

So, with a borderline predatory grin (that surprisingly didn’t seem to phase the angel in the slightest), Zim sealed his fate, “I think I can do that for you.”


	3. Trustworthy

Immediately, Dib knew that the devil was up to something- that the creature hovering just out of his reach was not to be trusted. There was something that the devil wanted, likely from him. The devil would not help him simply out of the kindness of his heart (did devils  _ have _ hearts?). Devils were historically not the type to do that. No, if the devil was going to help Dib it was because he would be gaining something from it. 

But Dib was nothing if not pragmatic. 

"Listen, I may not know  _ you _ , but I know your kind-"

The devil cut him off without any hesitation, "Clearly not very well if you don't even know the difference between a devil and a demon."

Dib glared, but continued regardless, "So let's make a deal."

"I thought that was the work of demons?" The devil's voice was teasing and playful but Dib still regarded him with a semblance of caution. 

"Deals don't have to be inherently  _ bad _ like most deals with devils and demons are. This one would benefit both parties."

"What exactly do you have in mind?"

"Well, you have something that I want, and, based off of that look on your face, I have something you want as well."

The devil made a face at that, clearly not liking being analyzed by a 'stupid angel', "And what is it that  _ I _ have that the likes of  _ you _ could possibly want?"

"Information," Dib stated simply, earning him an unimpressed, slightly amused look from the devil, "I want to learn everything I can about the universe- and that includes Hell and the surface. I can't exactly learn much about either places from the other Angel's and there's only so much I can learn without going to either of those places."

"What are you getting at, angel?" 

"If you show and teach me what I want to know, then I'll help you get whatever it is you want."

It was clear that the devil was thinking about Dib's suggestion, letting the idea ruminate as he squinted at the angel, deep in thought, "Whatever I want?"

Dib rolled his eyes, "Don't get too ahead of yourself,  _ devil _ . I'll help you with what you want,  _ within reason _ and  _ only _ if you help me as well."

The devil narrowed his eyes slightly, nodding at Dib's words, though it was clear that he wasn't entirely certain about whether or not the deal Dib had proposed was worth it. Dib didn’t know much about the devil, but there was something behind his eyes that burnt clear as day. He could practically see the gears turning in the devil’s head as he considered the offer the angel had given him. 

Wanting to mess with the devil a little (Dib had always been quite a bit more sadistic than angels were known for being), the angel began to turn away from him, “If you aren’t interested-”

“ _ No _ ,” the devil’s voice was sharp and had a note of finality and desperation to it, making Dib smirk. 

“Fantastic,” Dib tried his best to school his grin but couldn’t make himself do so, “So… what is it you want?”

“Power.”

Dib frowned at the simple answer. That didn’t give him very much to work with and, considering holy creatures didn’t have much- or any, really- power over the hierarchy of Hell, there was little Dib could do for the devil’s position down in his own realm. He couldn’t help the devil get what he clearly wanted- unless the devil wanted some sort of  _ angelic _ power- to be redeemed of his place in Hell- but Dib, being seconds away from being a fallen angel himself, wasn’t quite the best person to go to, if that was the case. 

“What exactly do you mean by that?” Dib asked, Tilting his head so that his glowing halo was even more lopsided than usual, “There isn’t really much I can do for you to get you power down there.”

“There is, even if you can’t see it,” the devil explained vaguely. 

Dib rolled his eyes, “I’m gonig to need a little more information than that if this is going to work.”

“If I can convince my higher-ups that I’ve managed to corrupt an  _ angel _ ,” a devious grin spread across his face, “Well,  _ that  _ would certainly show them my worth.”

“How do you suggest we do  _ that _ ?”

“Just leave the details to me.”

“Absolutely not.”

The devil glared at Dib, his unyielding stare practically withering with it’s intensity, but the angel wasn’t affected by it. He wasn’t going to let himself be scared off by some devil who, evidently, didn’t even have very much power down in the underworld. The devil couldn’t hurt him, so he wasn’t going to let himself be scared off by some weak intimidation tactics. 

“I’m going to need to know  _ exactly _ what’s going to happen here if I’m going to bother to make this agreement.”

“Fine,” the devil grumbled, clearly put out by the fact that Dib wouldn’t be as easy to manipulate as he had anticipated (something that Dib was  _ mildly _ proud of), “You said you want me to  _ show you _ things about Hell, right? Well, me bringing you down to Hell is already a small step towards making it seem true that I’m corrupting you. I can falsify some reports about what we’ve done. And…”

“And?”

“I will show you everything you want to see if you just do a  _ few _ small things that no pure angel would do,” the devil continued, “As long as I have some tangible proof- even if it’s fake or minor- they’ll have no choice but to believe me.”

Something twisted inside Dib. He wasn’t exactly the most  _ morally pure _ angel around, and he didn’t particularly have any issues with straying from what was  _ right _ for an angel to do if it ultimately benefitted him. This sounded almost too simple, though. As little as he cared about what happened to the devil, he knew that, if things  _ didn’t _ work out on his side, the devil wouldn’t give Dib what he needed. He had to make sure that things were going smoothly on both of their ends or else everything would spiral for the two of them. 

“Are you sure that’ll work?” Dib asked, “It seems… simple.”

“Based off of  _ that _ response, I’m going to assume that you don’t know when the most recent angel was corrupted and joined our side, but it was  _ decades _ ago. Peole will be impressed if it even  _ looks _ like an angel will be joining our ranks,” the devil elaborated, gesturing vaguely, “Besides, it’s rare for me to work with any other creatures of Hell when I’m on my missions, so we won’t have to worry too much about other people seeing what we’re  _ actually _ doing. All they’ll see is you with me and they’ll put a great deal of the story together themselves. We won’t even have to put forth much work to start the charade.”

Dib hummed, thinking about it. He supposed that sounded like a decent enough plan, and he didn’t know enough about Hell or its hierarchy of power to come up with a better idea for them to go through with. 

Besides, it wasn’t as though they couldn’t alter their course of action if they needed to. 

“Alright,” Dib nodded definitely. 

“Alright?” The devil grinned almost deviously, “So it’s a deal, then?”

The devil extended his hand towards Dib. The moment his hand was close enough for the angel to grasp, a flickering magenta and violent flame burst to power, encapsulating his entire clawed hand in brilliant flames. 

Well, two could play at that game. 

Dib extended his own hand towards the devil’s, a free-floating mass of dark blue flecked with gold swirled around his hand like a cloud, emitting an ethereal gold. 

“Show off,” the devil muttered. 

Dib just grinned, finally clasping the devil’s hand with his own. 

The moment he did so, there was an explosion of colour. The cloud and the fire combined with one another, creating a more intense fire that didn’t entirely fit within the laws of physics that applies to normal Hell fire. The flame burnt brightly, flickering between various colours, each of their respective colours swirling within one another in a stunning mosaic of clashing powers, only receding when they finally released one another.

Their pact was complete.


	4. Just in Case

Despite the fact that the newly formed, mutually beneficial pact between the devil and the angel was  _ definitely _ more important than the mission he had been sent on, in Zim’s opinion, he still had to do it. It would look suspicious if he suddenly just shirked his responsibilities, and, in the case that things  _ didn’t _ work out between him and the angel, Zim didn’t want to screw himself over more than he already had. He needed to have insurance that he could impress his leaders and keep a decent position in Hell. He had to continue with his work to ensure that everything went smoothly. 

Just in case. 

“You said you wanted me to show you everything?”

The angel rolled his eyes, “I did. Did you already forget the terms of our deal?”

“ _ No _ ,” Zim sighed, “I  _ did _ have a reason to come up here; I’m on a mission, at the moment. Today is your lucky day- you can come with me and help a devil in action.”

“Oh no way, I am  _ not  _ falling for that garbage.”

“You  _ just _ said that you would be willing to do anything to get what you wanted.”

“That doesn’t mean I’m an idiot,” the angel countered immediately, “I can’t just immediately jump into helping you commit crimes against God. It’ll look suspicious to  _ both _ of our higher-ups and won’t get us anywhere.”

Zim hummed softly. He supposed the angel had a point. The angel beginning to do devil’s work immediately after they met one another would make their plot obvious. It would become all too clear to the others in their respective domains that something was up- and Zim would get nowhere if his leaders knew that he hadn’t  _ actually _ done anything to corrupt the angel before. 

Begrudgingly, he had to admit that the angel was right, even if agreeing with an angelic creature was a revolting prospect.

“But… that doesn’t mean that I can’t  _ accompany you _ as you do whatever it is you creatures do.”

Zim smiled slightly. That was progress, at least- and it wouldn’t look  _ too _ suspicious if the angel was seen with him while he was working on his mission, so long as the angel did not intervene in any way (not that Zim anticipated anyone actually watching them during their time together). This would work.

“Alright, then,” Zim nodded, “Follow me.”

~~~

Dib was more than a little excited to finally be able to see a devil in action for the first time. This was what he had been working towards and searching for for the entirety of his lifespan thus far;  _ this _ was what he had given up his wing for. 

He did his best to contain his excitement, though, not wanting the devil to know just how thrilled he was to be in his current position. The dastardly fiend didn’t need to be aware of what he felt, and he certainly didn’t need to know just how much this benefited him. Dib didn’t want the devil to be too aware just yet- not until he was absolutely certain that he wasn’t being used. 

That was the issue with devils (well, one amongst  _ thousands _ of issues with them); they were beings of chaos and trickery. Making harmful deals that destroyed one party while helping the other one exclusively was  _ kind of _ what devils were known for. The phrase “deal with the devil” existed for a reason (though the phrase was slightly misleading considering the fact that there were  _ multiple _ devils within the depths of Hell rather than just one, powerful devil that ruled over the land, but humans couldn’t possibly know that specific fact). 

Regardless of how excited Dib was, he had to do everything in his power to ensure that he was safe and protected within their pact. He wouldn’t let himself fall victim to corrupt devils like so many humans did every day. He was more powerful and intelligent than them and he would not fall for the same tricks that they did.

That was one of the many reasons that he had clarified what he wanted and was willing to give in return when they initially made their agreement mere moments ago. 

Dib was going to make absolutely  _ certain _ that he didn’t get screwed over by this devil. He would learn everything he wanted and needed to know and he would help the devil get some power in return, but he would  _ not _ let himself fall from grace because of this or lose everything at the hands of the creature beside him.

He had to be careful.

Just in case.

“So…” Dib began conversationally as the devil lead the way, “Do you have a name?”

The devil scoffed at that, “Of  _ course _ I have a name. Creatures of Hell need things to call themselves too, even if we aren’t high and mighty beings living in the clouds.”

The distaste towards holy creatures such as himself did not go unnoticed by Dib and he rolled his eyes, “Then what’s your name?”

The devil hesitated for a moment, as if debating whether or not it would be worth it to tell the angel what his true name was. As far as Dib was aware, there were no particular drawbacks of people knowing devils’ names (it was only specific types of demons that were subject to  _ that _ being a problem), but, then again, he didn’t know very much about the world of Hell. The information Dib had on any realms beyond his own was limited, so he couldn’t say with confidence that knowing the devil’s name wouldn’t have a negative impact on the creature.

Evidently, though, he decided that telling Dib his name  _ was _ worth it, “It’s Zim.”

The angel couldn’t be sure whether or not that was an alias- it was such an odd name that he could see it being an entirely falsified one- but it didn’t matter much, either way.

“Zim?” Dib echoed, “What does that mean?”

“It doesn’t have a specific meaning.”

Dib nodded, “Similar situation with my name. It  _ does _ have a meaning, but it’s changed so many times over the centuries and so many different human colonies have used it for different things that it doesn’t have much of a meaning anymore.”

“What do they call you?”

“Dib.”

“Well, Dib,” the devil- Zim- finally stopped walking and turned to face him, flashing him a grin full of strangely shaped teeth that slotted together perfectly, each tooth discoloured slightly, tinted faintly pink, “We’re here.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My schedule will be strange for the next few days, so getting updates out on my works might take a bit of time, though I will try my best to make updates. :)


	5. Deal With a Devil

"What exactly is it that devils  _ do _ ?" Dib asked, scouring the location for any hint of demonic work. The area they were in didn't seem to have anything otherworldly about it. The aura wasn't altered at all as it typically was in areas filled with the power of creatures such as himself or Zim. It seemed entirely normal for a human home. "This doesn't seem like much of a hub for demonic activity."

"That's because it hasn't become one," Zim explained, “ _ Yet _ .” 

"Is that what you were sent here to do? Turn this place into a breeding ground for evil and demonic forces?"

"Eventually, yes," the demon tilted his head to the side, clearly unimpressed by Dib's lack of understanding, “At the moment, though, we’re starting off small. This mission in particular is focusing on just one creature.”

Dib’s interest had been piqued and he knew that his excitement about seeing the odd rituals of the devils was unedniably obvious, but he had no intentions of hiding those feelings- not when he was finally seeing what he had been searching his entire lifetime for. 

“What kind of creature is it, specifically,” the inquisitive angel asked, “Is it a demon? Or perhaps another devil? Is it one of those hellhounds that humans talk about?”

“Hellhounds are, more or less, just a myth that humans made up for their stupid media,” the devil rolled his eyes.

“Oh,” Dib frowned slightly. 

Upon seeing the angel’s face fall at that, the devil hesitated, “Er, they  _ do _ exist, to some extent, they just look less like dogs than humans tend to expect- and they were never called ‘hellhounds’ until humans came up with the ridiculous name.”

Dib made a mental note to ask him more about hellhounds at a later date. Now, though, he was more interested in finding out whatever the task currently at hand was. “Then what type of creature are we looking for?”

“A human.”

His eyebrows arched upwards. Dib hadn’t anticipated them working with a  _ human _ \- he hadn’t been aware that demons- or  _ devils _ , more accurately- even worked with humans in  _ any _ capacity. Were they even allowed to do that? It was highly frowned upon- and, in certain circumstances, considered illegal- for angels to do such things, so why were devils capable of doing so? 

Before Dib could voice his questions, however, Zim raised a clawed hand, gesturing for Dib to stay silent, much to the angel’s dismay, “Just- let me show you.”

Seemingly out of thin air, Zim summoned forth a strange mechanical device. Although it had been ages since holy creatures had switched from using the traditional blades and such that they had used when Earth had initially been created, the tool still looked fairly alien to him and it was clear that nothing quite like that existed in his own realm. It looked fairly new, the pieces it was composed of each pristinely polished and even shining slightly in the light of the afternoon sunshine. 

The device consisted of three main aspects- the part that Zim held betwixt his claws acting as the base of the tool, a silver, arm-like piece in the centre that allowed that main part to pivot within the base of it, and what was clearly the main section of the entire tool: a cone-shaped prism with purplish veins running through it. 

When Zim pressed a button on the device, the veins running through the main section of the device lit up, glowing a brilliant magenta as a beam of light matching the hue of the veins shot from the tip, etching a sigil upon the side of the building and igniting it within seconds. 

Moments after the sigil had been created, the device retracted into itself and Zim tucked it away before turning to Dib and gesturing towards the glowing swirls of varying shades of purple and pink imprinted upon the wall, “Just through here.”

Dib hesitated for only a moment before stepping through the newly opened portal, Zim following shortly after him. 

The room that they ended up in was what appeared to be a small living-quarters. The floors were covered in a soft, grey carpet. The walls were painted a dingey, off-white colour, through the walls were almost entirely covered by pictures, paintings, and posters arranged the room awkwardly, as though whoever had set them up was doing more to cover things up than anything else. Dirty clothes and cat toys were scattered across the floor, stacks upon stacks of books forming precarious little peaks around the room. The only furnishings were a desk with papers scattered across the surface and a small bed. 

A bed that currently contained a very startled, wide-eyed human. 

The human stared at them in shock for a few moments, gaping at the sight before them, “I… didn’t think the ritual had worked.”

“It did,” Zim eyed the human, “Unfortunately, I was a little…  _ tied up _ , so I couldn’t come immediately.”

“That’s why you came in through the-”

“Well,  _ yes _ , but, for future reference, it’s difficult for creatures from other realms to travel through portals like  _ that _ ,” Zim gestured towards a shaky sigil that stained the carpet, a look of distaste spread across his features. 

“It’s difficult to draw sigils on carpeted floors,” the human huffed.

“Then make them somewhere else in the future,” Zim instructed, taking a step closer to the human, making them tense slightly as he drew nearer, flashing them a wide, toothy smile, “That isn’t what we’re here to discuss, though, is it?”

The human gulped, “No…”

“Then tell me; why did you summon me?”

“I want someone dead.”

Dib arched an eyebrow curiously. If they needed someone dead- why not simply kill that person off themself? Why did they need to seek the help of a powerful devil to do their dirty work for them?

Zim began to speak, but the human cut him off, eyeing Dib suspiciously, “Why… is there an angel here? What's with-”

“He’s a harbinger of death and destruction who will sentence you to endless punishment for the rest of eternity if you wrong me,” Zim glared, gritting his teeth at the human, “Now,  _ listen closely _ .”

A bit nervously, the human nodded. 

"If you were smart enough to read the whole page before you tried to summon me- something I, for some reason,  _ doubt you did _ -" Dib snorted at that and the corner of Zim's lips twitched up slightly at the sound before he continued, "But the whole concept of a  _ 'deal with a devil' _ is a well-known one, so I'll assume that you know what I want in return for doing your dirty work for you. Is that correct?" 

"Yeah- yes," the human nodded, "You want my soul." 

"Correct," Zim grinned. 

"Wait- really?  _ One _ death is worth a  _ soul _ ?" Dib asked. Immediately, the serious tension of the room dissipated as the human shot him a confused look and Zim's expression twisted into a warning glare. 

"Uh… yeah? That's kind of how this usually goes…" the human trailed off before glancing back to Zim, "Right?"

" _ Yes _ ," Zim hissed. 

"How is killing  _ one _ person worth eternal-?"

Before Dib could finish what he was attempting to say, Zim summoned forth the same device he had used previously, powering it up and shooting it at the ground directly beneath where Dib was standing and sending him into an endlessly swirling abyss. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is becoming the comic relief fanfiction of the group.


End file.
